Problems with radio carbon dating

Basis of Radiocarbon DatingProblemswith Radiocarbon Dating The Earth's Magnetic Field Table 1 Effect of Increasing Earth's Magnetic Field Removal of Carbon From the Biosphere Water Vapour Canopy Effect on Radiocarbon Dating Figure 1 Apparent Radiocarbon Dates Heartwood and Frozen Time Early Post-Flood Trees Appendix Radiocarbon Date Table HOW ACCURATE IS RADIOCARBON DATING? The normal carbon atom has six protons and six neutrons in its nucleus, giving a total atomic mass of 12.

Radiocarbon dating is frequently used to date ancient human settlements or tools. It is a stable atom that will not change its atomic mass under normal circumstances.

Some scientists believe the problem runs far deeper than this, as the following quote shows: In the light of what is known about the radiocarbon method and the way it is used, it is truly astonishing that many authors will cite agreeable determinations as "proof" for their beliefs...As you might guess, radioactive carbon (C) is quite rare.Only one out of every trillion carbon atoms is C14. The C14 created in the upper atmosphere reacts with oxygen to become carbon dioxide.They found large variations in the radiocarbon 'dates' of objects of known age sent to 38 radiocarbon 'dating' laboratories around the world.Thirty-one of the labs gave results that the British group called unsatisfactory.The ions produced are forced into a magnetic field where the different mass of the carbon isotopes causes a different deflection, allowing the quantity of each isotope to be measured.This method is claimed to be more accurate than the older and slower method of counting the number of radioactive decay emissions from a quite large sample.However, because it has too many neutrons for the number of protons it contains, it is not a stable atom.Every 5,730 years, approximately half of this radioactive carbon spontaneously converts itself back into nitrogen by emitting an electron from a neutron. BASIS OF RADIOCARBON DATING Radiocarbon dating compares the amount of normal carbonwith the amount of radioactive carbon in a sample. What effect would the declining strength of the earth's magnetic field and a catastrophic worldwide flood have on radiocarbon dates?